A growing popularity of book clubs is hitting the medical field. This ABC News report explores why literature is beneficial for physicians, nurses, and any other caretaker. Reading literature written from a patient’s point of view, such as The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, the memoir of the late French Elle Editor-in-Chief Jean-Dominique Bauby (who essentially wrote the book through blinking after a stroke left him almost completely...  Read More »

A Washington DC hospital’s decision to fire 21 hospital employees-15 of whom were nurses-for missing work during the blizzards that occurred between Feb. 5 and Feb. 11 has drawn attention from Nurses United of the National Capital Region and the American Nurses Association (ANA), reports Joe Cantlupe, for HealthLeaders Media. The dismissals at Washington Hospital Center, the largest private nonprofit hospital in the DC area, have...  Read More »

If you’re a young nurse, I’m sure you rely on older, more experienced nurses for help. Not only is their expertise valuable, but older nurses make up so much of the nursing workforce that hospitals need them. The nursing shortage is certainly looming, making it more important than ever to ensure that older nurses who wish to stay working beyond retirement age can do so, reports Rebecca Hendren for HealthLeaders Media in her latest...  Read More »

West Boca (FL) Medical Center’s Jill Wiser, RN, had a unique view of the utility of medicine vial caps, syringe holders, and paint samples. Wiser turned the materials into five mosaic-like abstract pieces of art that are now on display at the medical center, reports Nurse.com. The pieces are made by assembling the caps on a piece of canvas about 3 feet wide. The nurse’s station, CNO office, and nursery are all decorated with...  Read More »

The Well blog in the New York Times this week explores an interesting and ever-present topic: why nurses bully each other, or “eat their young,” as many nurses call it. In it, Seattle nurse, consultant, and author Kathleen Bartholomew is mentioned-she literally wrote the book on the topic, which might be worth checking out: Ending Nurse-to-Nurse Hostility: Why Nurses Eat Their Young. The blog explores the reasons behind such...  Read More »

This will be an interesting trial to follow for nurses and all healthcare professionals, sure to set some precedent about nurse and physician reporting. Anne Mitchell, a former administrative nurse at Winkler County Memorial Hospital in Kermit, TX, will stand trial in a week at a state courthouse for “misuse of official information” after she anonymously reported a physician to the Texas Medical Board in April 2009, according...  Read More »

Many employers try to discourage their employees from smoking, but what about denying employment because the applicant smokes? Memorial Hospital in Chattanooga, TN, will no longer hire employees who smoke, reports The Chattanooga Pulse. The hospital plans to drug-screen prospective employees for nicotine. If tested positive, the hospital will rescind its offer of employment. Brad Pope, the vice president of human resources, told the Pulse...  Read More »

Communication between staff members in hospitals is a topic that has been studied and practiced in great detail. One particular concern has always been the handoff: when a one staff member leaves a shift and another comes in. How do you ensure that all critical information gets passed along-and is understood-to ensure patient safety? An interesting article from HealthLeaders Media, written by Sarah Kearns, explains how one hospital addressed...  Read More »

Temporary nursing agencies that supply the nation’s short-staffed hospitals with nurses often fail to verify credentials, keep important licensure records, and interview applicants before hire, according to an interesting piece in the Los Angeles Times. According to the article, “An investigation by the nonprofit newsroom ProPublica and the Los Angeles Times found dozens of instances in which staffing agencies skimped on background...  Read More »

A new movement is quietly creeping into healthcare, and its silencing effect is being felt at one New York hospital. Press Ganey reports, which measure patient satisfaction, have long included noise level on it surveys, and some hospitals, like St. Elizabeth Medical Center in Utica, NY, are working to ensure noise doesn’t disrupt a patient’s stay. The hospital is working to reduce noise levels in an effort to increase patient safety...  Read More »